Mirror Magazine

Mirror Magazine

All tomorrow’s parties
Kreb’s Cycle rocks the joint at their ‘Last Breath’ gig at the Blizz. Prasad Pereira was there…
The atmosphere was fitting for the last waltz of a rock outfit. The club was packed. Four young men faced their audience for the last time together.

The smoke-filled air was charged with that uncanny electricity that bonded souls. The strange hybrid slowburn was active – and restless. The wait for the raw, potent, fervid sounds emanating from the bandstand were soon to end and everyone knew it. The mood was of anticipation, as the house waited for the opening strains of a band they would not hear again – after the night.

You could almost read the eyes dotted amongst the crowd, as people who were already lost in the music that was to come, ready to lose themselves in the fury of the moment, waited for a night that would never end. With the air charged with such high voltage – nothing could go wrong. And it didn’t.

Lead guitarist Ranil Goonawardane began a slow strum, his guitar humming as familiarity dawned. “Lightning Crashes”. And so began Kreb’s Cycle’s final gig. Staying true to their nature in beginning with the song they always started their gigs off with, the band let familiarity rock and roll. Everything was perfectly in place, and their renditions of songs memorable from the alt-rock boom of the late nineties and early 2000s struck a chord with everyone as people jumped, danced, convulsed and let their souls run free to the thunder of the temple of noise. Lead vocalist Azlan Bathusha let his voice soar, belting out such classics as Fuel’s “Hemorrhage (In My Hands)”, 3 Doors Down’s radio staple “Kryptonite”, the powerful Incubus songs “I Wish You Were Here” and “Megalomaniac”, perennial crowd favourite “Bodies” by Drowning Pool, Staind’s melancholy “Outside”, the Metallica classic “Nothing Else Matters” and the Counting Crows’ ode to the common man “Mr. Jones”.

Also figuring prominently in their setlist was a superb rendition of the Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers’ “Mary Jane’s Last Dance” and the gentle lament of “Superman (It’s Not Easy)”. Originals did see their outings as well – with the upbeat “Pelican’s Highway” the tender “Hold The Line” and nu-metal rage of “Divine You” all getting their due in the Kreb’s Cycle cannon.

The highlight of the night, however, was when they did their customary rendition of Train’s “Drops Of Jupiter”. As Azlan began the opening lines, the entire house joined in, going head-to-head with the lead singer – word-for-word. It was then that Ranil’s guitar failed, losing power due to a minor malfunction. But that didn’t deter the crowd of Krebbites filling in for the band. The song continued, as the chorus shuddered through the house: “Tell me, did you fall for a shooting star/One without a permanent scar/And did you miss me while you were looking for yourself out there.” And the band played on.

Everyone got what they were looking for, as the band said goodbye, paying tribute to their loyal fans in true Kreb’s Cycle style – with their music. Azlan’s vocals were in place, while Ranil’s guitar work was, as usual, quite incomparable, proving him to be one of the finest guitarists in Colombo. Joel McShane, who joined the band recently following the departure of founding bassist Iqbal Hassan, did a solid job, keeping the rhythm section tight with drummer Senaka Pereira’s impassioned, expression-addled drum readings.

The band soared, proving beyond all reasonable doubt that they indeed were a force to be reckoned with, harking back to their glory days, giving their fans a true memento of their rock‘n’roll days, keeping the decibel level high, catering to what their fan base loved hearing the most. Burn out or fade away, there is only one thing left to say: Kreb’s Cycle Rocks!

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